POSSIBLY FROM AKSU, EAST TURKESTAN, LATE 18TH/EARLY 19TH CENTURY

It has been suggested that the unusual design of compartments containing a pair of Gul medallions on the present rug stems from the prayer safs that had been woven in number in east Turkestan during the reign of Yaqub Beg (1862-75) when he had been bestowed the title of Emir. Under Beg's instruction, religious guardians (Muhtasib) would aggressively enforce religious law with the use of leather whips. Fortunately when Beg's reign came to an end, these habits ended, as did the production of these prayer safs. (Hans Bidder, Carpets from East Turkestan, Tubingen, 1964, p.85). Bidder furthermore believes that this compartmentalised design without the former mihrab, was woven in the lesser known weaving centre of Aksu, an area on the southern slopes of the T'ien-shan range, a gathering point and market place for the Kirghiz and Torgut nomads. There is however very little documentary or technical evidence to support this attribution mostly due to the nomadic life style of the weavers, (J.Eskenazi, Il Tappeto Orientale dal XV al XVIII secolo, London, 1981, p.443).